The 7.2M Taiwan earthquake on 3 April was a reminder for us here in Nepal about the importance of preparation with up to code infrastructure, earthquake early warning sensors hooked to mobile &nbsp;networks, seismic risk education in schools, and swift emergency response.&nbsp;
Although 13 people were killed, readiness saved lives. Skyscrapers shook and swayed but did not fall, high-rises tilted but did not collapse. A similar intensity earthquake in Taiwan in 1999 had killed 2,400 people. &nbsp;
This week marks nine years since Nepal’s 2015 earthquakes that killed nearly 9,000 people. It has been four months since a 6.4M quake <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/opinion/comment/learning-from-jajarkot-what-we-didnt-after-2015-695vpzle">struck Jajarkot and West Rukum</a> near midnight on 3 November, claiming 153 lives.&nbsp;
In the immediate aftermath of 2015, building codes, earthquake-resistant designs and retrofitting became high priority. But as memories fade, so does the fear. Nine years on, buildings <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/the-rise-of-high-rises">including high-rises that flout zoning and building codes</a> have come up in Kathmandu while <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/the-occupation-of-tundikhel">open spaces have further shrunk</a>.&nbsp;
Himalayan seismologists have warned that 2015 was not the Big One, the kind of quake that hits central Nepal every 80 or so years. Neither was Jajarkot the megaquake scientists had expected in western Nepal’s seismic gap. As we have been saying in this paper for the last 24 years, the next big earthquake is ‘not a matter of if, but when’.
While the 14 districts affected by the 2015 disaster have now mostly been rebuilt, and are better prepared, the rest of the country is not. A &gt;8M megaquake in Western Nepal would be a trans-boundary disaster of unthinkable proportions.
In Jajarkot and West Rukum, many <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/jajarkot-survivors-show-collective-resilience">survivors spent the winter </a>without a roof over their heads, and they still await relief to rebuild. The National &nbsp;Reconstruction Authority (NRA) might have taken nine months to set up after the 2015 earthquake, but that disaster should have been a lesson for timely assessment for earthquake relief at the very least.
Nepal is a <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/lost-and-damaged">landmine of disasters</a>. Nearly 350 people have died just in the past year in floods, landslides, lightning, and forest fires, and not including Jajarkot. We are now in the thick of wildfire season. Hundreds of forest fires are burning across the country, some for weeks. Three fire-fighting soldiers and three children picking mushrooms were killed by wind-fanned flames just in the past week.&nbsp;
The <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/nepal-suffers-another-winter-drought">prolonged winter drought</a> should have warned us that this year, the fires would be much worse. But adding fuel to the fires, as it were, is the new trend of burning wheat straw after harvest by farmers.&nbsp;
Fire is always followed by flood, and this year, weather models predict above-normal monsoon precipitation. As it is, monsoons have become erratic with extreme downpours followed by weeks without rain. Mohan Mainali’s ongoing series in Nepali Times <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/people-and-mountains-are-thirsty-in-eastern-nepal">analysing meteorological, hydrological and demographic data from eastern Nepal </a>shows that Nepal has always suffered from either too little or too much water, and this has contributed to outmigration.
Landslides triggered by heavy rainfall along Nepal’s <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/roadkill">poorly designed roads</a> in never-ending states of construction magnify the risk. Landslides can also frequently block rivers, which raises the need for early warning systems.
And if all this was not bad enough, we have the <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/sikkim-flood-is-warning-to-nepal">threat of GLOFs </a>from glacial lakes swollen with ice melted by climate breakdown. The water level in the Tso Rolpa glacial lake in Rolwaling was reduced by 3m in 2002, and the water level of Imja Lake was lowered after the 2015 earthquake to mitigate the risk of GLOFs. But these lakes continue to expand as the Himalaya warms 0.7oC faster than the global average.&nbsp;
Thulagi glacial lake below Himalchuli is another one in danger of bursting, and would wash away four hydropower projects downstream on the Marsyangdi River. A GLOF from the precariously situated Lake 464 in the Hinku Valley would race down the Dudh Kosi Valley, into the Sun Kosi and right down to the Tarai.&nbsp;
While these lakes are all dangerous by themselves, they could burst simultaneously during a major earthquake. Which means Nepal must be prepared not just for earthquakes, but the co-seismic risk of catastrophic debris flows along its rivers.&nbsp;
Disaster preparedness means knowing and acknowledging potential without spreading panic and crying wolf. And:&nbsp;
<ul>
 <li>Stockpiling and pre-positioning food and other relief materials</li>
 <li>Investing in search and rescue equipment and training</li>
 <li>Safety drills and earthquake education in schools</li>
 <li>Decentralised first responders with aerial medevac</li>
</ul>
Shristi Karki

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Disastrous preparedness

For a year or two after the 25 April 2015 earthquake, the residents of Kathmandu were too terrified to return to their high-rise apartments. None of them collapsed in the 7.8 disaster, but many sustained serious structural damage. &nbsp;
Fast forward nine years, and they have all but forgotten that frightful day. Kathmandu is back to building substandard structures, even as land prices drive developers to build taller.&nbsp;
With no more space to spread horizontally, Kathmandu is going vertical. But structural engineers say most of the high rises do not take into account seismicity, soil condition, construction methods, quality of raw materials, fire hazard, and search and rescue in collapsed concrete structures.
“Much of our focus since the 2015 earthquake has been on building and construction, but not as much on where we are building,” warns Sangeeta Singh, Professor of Urban Planning and Deputy Director of Centre for Disaster Studies at the Institute of Engineering.
Read also: <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/banner/in-a-disastrous-state">In a disastrous state</a>, Sonia Awale
She adds: “Kathmandu is not really suited for high-rises. We have to first test the condition of the soil, but building permits are being issued without this fundamental step.”
Kathmandu Valley is a former lakebed with soft topsoil prone to liquefaction and excessive shaking, as seen during the 1934 megaquake. Many ruptures tore up the surface in 2015. &nbsp;
During an earthquake, the rock layers below Kathmandu ring like a bell and the vibrations on the surface take between 0.5 to 2 seconds for one oscillation. Buildings also vibrate, but at different frequencies depending on their height, construction material, and arrangement of their structural components.
At five floors, the vibration period of a building is 0.5 seconds, which is the same as that for Kathmandu Valley, and this could cause more damage, says structural engineer Surya Narayan Shrestha at the National Society for Earthquake Technology - Nepal (NSET).
“Building anything that is five storeys or higher in Kathmandu needs special design and structural considerations,” says Shrestha.
Read also: <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/editorial/shaking-things-up">Shaking things up</a>, Editorial
Technologies exist to reduce seismic risk in high-rises, and these are used in earthquake-prone cities like Tokyo, Los Angeles, Jakarta or Mexico City.&nbsp;
Base isolation, for example, separates the vibration of the land and the building, reducing damage from soil-building resonance. Base isolators move and stretch under pressure, absorbing much of an earthquake's impact by reducing swaying and shaking. &nbsp;
Seismic dampers change the pattern of vibration altogether, dissipating energy as vibrations move across a structure. But these are all expensive technologies, and none of the high-rises in Kathmandu use them.
However, Nepali engineers who can help with technology transfer are working in the field in Nepal and overseas. Kathmandu’s high-rises are already very expensive, and making them seismic-resistant would be an incremental cost.
Read also: <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/opinion/comment/learning-from-jajarkot-what-we-didnt-after-2015-695vpzle">Learning from Jajarkot what we didn't after 2015</a>, Sushil Gyewali
The shape of high-rises also matters. Reinforced concrete buildings with asymmetric designs of the kind that are seen in newer structures in Kathmandu experience more torsion and shear during quakes. High-rises with regular geometry are stronger. &nbsp;&nbsp;
An even bigger concern is that of emergency evacuation and rescue in case of fire or earthquake. Kathmandu fire services do not have ladders that reach the higher floors of most new structures.
“High-rises mean more people and potentially higher casualties,” explains Shrestha. “We need immediate evacuation routes, fire escapes, emergency ladders, and fire trucks that can reach higher. Right now, safety features are voluntary and not mandatory.”
The street access, shelters, open spaces, and evacuation routes are integral to disaster preparedness and the safety of neighbourhoods and not just buildings. Most new high-rises in Kathmandu have narrow access roads.
Read also: <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/opinion/rebuilding-resilience-7-years-later">Rebuilding resilience 7 years later</a>, Anil Pokhrel
Since most of the buildings that survived the 2015 disaster were reinforced concrete structures, it fed the misconception that they are safer. But Himalayan seismologists say that if the intensity and duration of the shaking had been just a little higher, many substandard concrete structures would have collapsed.&nbsp;
And that is the final gap: Nepal’s limited expertise and equipment for search and rescue inside collapsed concrete structures. Kathmandu’s high-rises need to be better prepared for the next Big One.
“Structural safety and design were at the front and the centre after the 2015 earthquake, we also revised some building codes but we are back to square one with contractor-driven construction, especially in peri-urban areas,” says Sangeeta Singh, who is also with the National Planning Commission. “We need to monitor construction as much as design.”&nbsp;
Shrestha at NSET agrees there have been improvements in building practices in the past nine years, but adds, “We have both learnt and unlearnt lessons from 2015. The awareness hasn’t yet translated into action on safety.”
Read also: <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/lessons-not-learned-from-2015-o2etq6zu">Lessons not learned from 2015</a>, Sonia Awale

Sonia Awale

The rise of high-rises

Who better than Rohit Ranjitkar, Nepal’s foremost heritage architect, to put together this voluminous documentation of the repair, restoration and rebuilding of Kathmandu Valley’s monuments after the 2015 earthquake. Monuments of the Kathmandu Valley: Before &amp; After the 2015 Earthquake is a sort of post mortem of how the historic temples, shrines, monasteries, stupas, rest houses and Rana palaces were rebuilt from the ground up – with both good and bad examples. But it is a tribute to Ranjitkar and his colleagues that restoration has been sensitively done, reusing salvaged material, and employing modern items only when necessary for structural purposes. Cement was not used, and stainless steel dowels only inserted inside stone columns to make them safe.&nbsp; Ranjitkar is director of the Kathmandu Valley Preservation Trust (KVPT), and within minutes of the earthquake at 11:56 on 25 April 2015, he was out on Patan Darbar Square, helping rescue not just those trapped under the rubble but also mobilising Patan’s community to carry valuable stone carvings, wooden columns and fallen bronze idols for safekeeping in the nearby Patan Museum.  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/2023072110074_c3165c450933eb0f523acf1fa726d0e354e68a516d87a91de72829e12b2f27d7.jpg" data-media-id="editor_0" data-image-id="2023072110074_c3165c450933eb0f523acf1fa726d0e354e68a516d87a91de72829e12b2f27d7" data-rendition-name="original" width="960" height="640" loading="lazy" alt="Rebuilding better than before NT"> </figure>  In the week after the earthquake, he stopped Nepal Army bulldozers from clearing the debris from the 12th century Hari Shankar temple and the 400-year-old Char Narayan temple so items could be retrieved. Many of these were classified and restored to the exact place on the temples. In the store room of &nbsp;Patan Museum were artifacts from the 1934 earthquake which were also put back in their right places.&nbsp; Destructive earthquakes happen every 80 years or so in Nepal and this allows the skills, craft and knowledge of restoration to pass from one generation to the next. This book is a part of that tradition.&nbsp;  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/2023072110074_024da2a4ae2ba5c95bb08767a5d4b27b88bcf6a2a2a03ef05a92c8e4a4286d2c.jpg" data-media-id="editor_1" data-image-id="2023072110074_024da2a4ae2ba5c95bb08767a5d4b27b88bcf6a2a2a03ef05a92c8e4a4286d2c" data-rendition-name="original" width="1000" height="750" loading="lazy" alt="2015 and present NT"> </figure>   <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/2023072110078_07d8487a9232d6ace1d1a3be01a6a7bc72f8f5b3763c9e09cb744220e187e6e6.jpg" data-media-id="editor_2" data-image-id="2023072110078_07d8487a9232d6ace1d1a3be01a6a7bc72f8f5b3763c9e09cb744220e187e6e6" data-rendition-name="original" width="1000" height="669" loading="lazy" alt="Rebuilding better than before NT"> </figure>  Ranjitkar provides numerous examples of damaged wooden struts and tympanum that were replaced, repaired, and missing pieces recarved from scratch. The 625-page volume is lavishly illustrated with photographs and drawings of the reconstruction process. This makes the book itself a treasure house of information.  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/2023072110078_563614fcf5090e03daf43531a3ece74a2b9be6454cf12b6cd6a173aa9f5e77d8.jpg" data-media-id="editor_3" data-image-id="2023072110078_563614fcf5090e03daf43531a3ece74a2b9be6454cf12b6cd6a173aa9f5e77d8" data-rendition-name="original" width="1000" height="951" loading="lazy" alt="Jagannath sketch"> </figure>  High on top of the Taleju in Patan, KVPT did not just rebuild the titled cupola but corrected faulty reconstruction after 1934. The book includes details of the rebuilding of the Machindranath Temple in Bungmati, the Indrayani Temple (below) built in 1792, Kasthamandap, Boudhanath stupa.&nbsp;  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/2023072110074_521dc33e26ccee0ab5eff1ff095d101b4c14cbc4a37b78936d1f6077d4814ab5.jpg" data-media-id="editor_4" data-image-id="2023072110074_521dc33e26ccee0ab5eff1ff095d101b4c14cbc4a37b78936d1f6077d4814ab5" data-rendition-name="original" width="1000" height="668" loading="lazy" alt="Rebuilding better than before NT"> </figure>   <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/2023072110074_3f86551605f5ec6ba2c27c456b804d3554030329649c10c0b68695da49ab77eb.jpg" data-media-id="editor_5" data-image-id="2023072110074_3f86551605f5ec6ba2c27c456b804d3554030329649c10c0b68695da49ab77eb" data-rendition-name="original" width="1000" height="750" loading="lazy" alt="Rebuilding better than before NT"> </figure>  In Bhaktapur, Ranjitkar shows &nbsp;how a watercolour painting by Henry Ambrose Oldfield in 1853 was used to restore the west façade of the Malati Chok not only to pre-2015, not even pre-1934 but to its original design in the 19th century.&nbsp; Monuments of the Kathmandu Valley does not just feature the restoration of Malla-era structures, but also former Rana palaces that now serve as government buildings like Singha Darbar, Rastra Bank, Harihar Bhavan or Keshar Mahal. Ranjitkar gives examples of mistakes like the 1832 Lagan Silkhana that was demolished after damage. We are sure there are many other examples of how restoration could have been done better, but this book is mostly about the ones well done. <h2>Restoration of a King</h2> The cover of Monuments of the Kathmandu Valley: Before &amp; After the 2015 Earthquake has the dramatic and hitherto unpublished photograph (right) of Patan Darbar Square while the temple structures were coming down in a cloud of brown dust.&nbsp; The image was taken by James Kirk at exactly 11:56 on 25 April 2015, and shows the 350-year-old bronze statue of King Yognarendra Malla falling from its pedestal as flocks of frightened pigeons circle above the dust cloud.  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/2023072110070_0c32b837a1a62ec4a2cfefb67f7885c279f2eeacf249dbc406bbdcfda704fcc9.jpg" data-media-id="editor_6" data-image-id="2023072110070_0c32b837a1a62ec4a2cfefb67f7885c279f2eeacf249dbc406bbdcfda704fcc9" data-rendition-name="original" width="1500" height="1000" loading="lazy" alt="Restoration of a king NT"> </figure>   <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/2023072110074_f0e64b42bab652f4c1aab5b7ef343fd49bc42b4ada0424863e12c844514229a4.jpg" data-media-id="editor_7" data-image-id="2023072110074_f0e64b42bab652f4c1aab5b7ef343fd49bc42b4ada0424863e12c844514229a4" data-rendition-name="original" width="1000" height="750" loading="lazy" alt="Restoration of a king NT"> </figure>  &nbsp;Kirk took another photo at 12:33. By then the dust has settled, and the statue is lying on its side, with a ‘top-less’ South Taleju in the background. There is already someone trying to dig through the rubble of the Hari Narayan temple to rescue people trapped underneath.  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/2023072110070_c4f2745f6da695d72506cbe83550dab02e4b296a683f921fcb40bb2bca52f75a.jpg" data-media-id="editor_8" data-image-id="2023072110070_c4f2745f6da695d72506cbe83550dab02e4b296a683f921fcb40bb2bca52f75a" data-rendition-name="original" width="1333" height="1000" loading="lazy" alt="Restoration of a king NT"> </figure>   <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/2023072110070_624dffc791430e7f6e046a4056a31fff96b325dcb6eebc58a053d54e9f1358b9.jpg" data-media-id="editor_9" data-image-id="2023072110070_624dffc791430e7f6e046a4056a31fff96b325dcb6eebc58a053d54e9f1358b9" data-rendition-name="original" width="1000" height="750" loading="lazy" alt="Restoration of a king NT"> </figure>   <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20230721100716_54baebd3651092231970c654d0babf9edaaae6ba59f25089830b133e204fe63d.jpg" data-media-id="editor_10" data-image-id="20230721100716_54baebd3651092231970c654d0babf9edaaae6ba59f25089830b133e204fe63d" data-rendition-name="original" width="1750" height="1465" loading="lazy" alt="Restoration of a king NT"> </figure>  King Yognarendra Malla’s statue was damaged, but looks as if it is kneeling in prayer. The face did not even have a scratch. The king and his consorts were repaired and consecrated on top of the column in 2017. Even the gilded copper bird finial, which was lost and &nbsp;miraculously found was replaced on top of the serpent. &nbsp;  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/2023072110078_f5fbc8754184fbd5a05056ae93d12ae5445f5f214d260563a08811663735ef45.jpg" data-media-id="editor_11" data-image-id="2023072110078_f5fbc8754184fbd5a05056ae93d12ae5445f5f214d260563a08811663735ef45" data-rendition-name="original" width="999" height="750" loading="lazy" alt="Rebuilding better than before NT"> </figure>   <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/2023072110078_75ef64548c8de35cf4497ba97961e0b1c6650dcb1f90f6f979fb6183d3657cfe.jpg" data-media-id="editor_12" data-image-id="2023072110078_75ef64548c8de35cf4497ba97961e0b1c6650dcb1f90f6f979fb6183d3657cfe" data-rendition-name="original" width="1000" height="706" loading="lazy" alt="Rebuilding better than before NT"> </figure>   <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20230721100728_323655d03a94bdef9e17709caaf547501aac2e6c9c17f5662f258c073cfd4b54.jpg" data-media-id="editor_13" data-image-id="20230721100728_323655d03a94bdef9e17709caaf547501aac2e6c9c17f5662f258c073cfd4b54" data-rendition-name="original" width="1000" height="1000" loading="lazy" alt="Yogendra Malla"> </figure>  <h2>&nbsp;REINCARNATION</h2> The Charnarayan temple built in 1566 in Patan Darbar Square collapsed in a cloud of dust.&nbsp; The first photograph by Suresh Lakhe taken at 12:01 shows the square engulfed in dust. Five minutes later, people are standing at the centre of the square as the ground swayed, and structures collapsed around them. Pigeons wheeled overhead.&nbsp;  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20230721090756_95b7359387aa2bf3456d412f13bdbba39c4ed6da767392572d2e2a1b78f986a8.jpg" data-media-id="editor_14" data-image-id="20230721090756_95b7359387aa2bf3456d412f13bdbba39c4ed6da767392572d2e2a1b78f986a8" data-rendition-name="original" width="1000" height="750" loading="lazy" alt="Reincarnation NT"> </figure>   <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20230721090756_07d3503758e7152df470bb2a514ccf95e755ab673b056ba984fe4019c1e68c6c.jpg" data-media-id="editor_15" data-image-id="20230721090756_07d3503758e7152df470bb2a514ccf95e755ab673b056ba984fe4019c1e68c6c" data-rendition-name="original" width="1000" height="750" loading="lazy" alt="Reincarnation NT"> </figure>   <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20230721090756_cc75d8468d2eddb167ab15fa7add71802495df6f59572aadc05db2544b46c408.jpg" data-media-id="editor_16" data-image-id="20230721090756_cc75d8468d2eddb167ab15fa7add71802495df6f59572aadc05db2544b46c408" data-rendition-name="original" width="1000" height="750" loading="lazy" alt="Reincarnation NT"> </figure>  &nbsp;The last photo taken in 2019 shows the temple meticulously restored by KVPT from the foundation up, using local material like yellow mud mortar, and &nbsp;traditional building techniques.  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20230721090756_9436d09379a7ca1258be665ef0a10fef098fcf5245de778bdaf3aac5c07bef6b.jpg" data-media-id="editor_17" data-image-id="20230721090756_9436d09379a7ca1258be665ef0a10fef098fcf5245de778bdaf3aac5c07bef6b" data-rendition-name="original" width="1000" height="750" loading="lazy" alt="Reincarnation NT"> </figure>   <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20230721150736_fd0a53230e6bdc860666fc8cc84bfbb22adc7e1720b573437ababd103ddf3601.jpg" data-media-id="editor_18" data-image-id="20230721150736_fd0a53230e6bdc860666fc8cc84bfbb22adc7e1720b573437ababd103ddf3601" data-rendition-name="original" width="2194" height="1415" loading="lazy" alt="Book Launch"> <figcaption>The book by Rohit Ranjitkar (extreme right) being launched by the former head of the National Reconstruction Authority Sushil Gyewali, Director General of the Department of Archaeology Damodar Gautam and American Ambassador Dean R Thompson. Photo: MADAN PURASKAR PUSTAKALAYA </figcaption> </figure>   <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/2023072110074_b732aa116e67e555e8583b7804b7f874252dc826ddafd32564827e3cce31d974.jpg" data-media-id="editor_19" data-image-id="2023072110074_b732aa116e67e555e8583b7804b7f874252dc826ddafd32564827e3cce31d974" data-rendition-name="original" width="3000" height="2000" loading="lazy" alt="Rebuilding better than before book details NT"> </figure>  The book was launched on 21 July in Yalamaya Kendra, Patan Dhoka.&nbsp;

Kunda Dixit

Rebuilding better than before

Two adjoininig villages became household names after the 25 April 2015 earthquake: Laprak and Barpak in Gorkha district.&nbsp; The quaintly rhyming names of these two Gurung settlements evoke frightful memories of the destructive power of the 7.8 magnitude earthquake. The epicentre was just 8km away, and the earthquake levelled most houses in both villages as well as surrounding ones. On the eighth anniversary of the earthquake, Laprak and Barpak hold lessons on how not to design and implement post-disaster reconstruction of homes. Ram Gurung along with most Laprak residents had nowhere to go when his home was destroyed in 2015, so the family lived in tents in a livestock meadow in Gumsipakha up the mountain. “I did not want to go back, there was nothing to go back to,” Gurung recalls. After the earthquake, overseas Nepalis helped the National Reconstruction Authority (NRA) to build an integrated settlement in the same pasture in Gumsipakha. It was supposed to be finished in two years, but stretched to five with cost overruns to Rs576 million.&nbsp; But today, only 50 of the 573 new uniformly built houses in Gumsipakha are inhabited. Laprak is now an example of how even well-intentioned disaster response can be inappropriate.&nbsp; The houses all look the same, they do not reflect the integrated townscape of traditional Gurung villages, it is a four hour hike away up the mountain from the original village, it is colder, and gets snow in winter. &nbsp; Laprak was hit by a destructive landslide 17 years before the earthquake, and geologists had recommended relocating the village even back then. But it looks like relocating the new settlement in Gumsipakha was not a good idea.&nbsp; Read also: <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/opinion/guest-editorial/nepalquake-8-years-later">#NepalQuake 8 years later</a>, Anil Pokhrel  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20230425110412_471044c43596f287ab6a97d7d4d68864f6fc5a67cfece4bcf198b555defcba5f.jpg" data-media-id="editor_1" data-image-id="20230425110412_471044c43596f287ab6a97d7d4d68864f6fc5a67cfece4bcf198b555defcba5f" data-rendition-name="original" width="853" height="525" loading="lazy" alt="2015 earthquake map NT"> </figure>  Like the adjoining village of Barpak, most families here have members who have served in the British and Indian armies. The earthquake accelerated the outmigration from Upper Gorkha, so there was also no need to build so many new houses anyway. Most remaining residents are farmers and pastoralists, but the new houses do not have space for livestock like in traditional Gurung homes. If the villagers stay in Gumsipakha, they would have to come down to Laprak every day to take care of the fields and animals. “The houses and the location were just not suited for farming families like ours,” says Kamala Gurung, who has moved back to Laprak. “There is no space for storing our harvest, or to build sheds for animals or even for the children to play in.” The new houses have two floors, and are also not fit for extended families. Locals have found that &nbsp;doors and windows of the houses are not sturdy enough, and they do not feel safe with just a plastic roof. But the biggest problem is that there are no nearby springs at Gumsipakha. The charity CARE Nepal did bring water from 19km away, but the pipes burst due to the freezing cold this winter, and residents had to fetch water from a spring half an hour away. For many, that was the last straw. Marsi Gurung is one of the few people who still Iive in the new settlement, and thinks people will move back if the water problem is solved. “They did not plan this properly at all,” he says. “Many people have moved back to Laprak despite the landslide danger there.”&nbsp; Read also: <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/back-to-classroom-for-earthquake-preparedness">Back to classroom for earthquake preparedness</a>, Rachael Lau&nbsp;  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/2023042511048_35683ecbdc20d4922f5b83f012f934b9d29ca2971ac9fc5b7e100fa44af27d2c.jpg" data-media-id="editor_3" data-image-id="2023042511048_35683ecbdc20d4922f5b83f012f934b9d29ca2971ac9fc5b7e100fa44af27d2c" data-rendition-name="original" width="1293" height="699" loading="lazy" alt="Lapark 2"> </figure>  Same story elsewhere In Yasikai village of Rapti Municipality in Chitwan, villagers were relocated 6km west to Kalitar after the earthquake because of landslide risk. The NRA provided land and Rs6.5 million to construct new houses, but no one lives there.&nbsp; According to Ward Chair Ashok Kumar Praja, the reason people are still living in Yasikai is that “The houses in Kalitar are not suitable for farmers, there is nowhere to keep the animals,” says Praja. Some 56 families of Kapurgaun of Dhading district were also relocated to Bhuwalepani and Ale following the earthquake. The NRA got Rs4.5 million to build new homes, but after living there for a short time people started moving back to their original village. The reason was the same: the new settlement had houses but no arrangements for farming and animals or any employment opportunities. And even though it was only 10km away from the district headquarters, it was four days away from their old village. After the earthquake, the NRA authorised building 64 settlements in 32 districts out of which 20 have been constructed and 44 are still being built. More than Rs1.42 billion has been spent to construct 3,956 houses, but most are small, narrow, and built with little consideration for the climate of the locality or of the lifestyle of residents.&nbsp; Geological conditions, physical and social infrastructure, and the local economy have been used to identify villages to be relocated after the earthquake. Standards for roads, water supply, sewerage, open areas, buildings, waste management, schools, health services, and building construction have also been spelled out.&nbsp; But most of the new settlements do not follow the planned parameters because research was rarely conducted on the social, economic, cultural, and geographical aspects of the inhabitants. Read also: <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/in-a-disastrous-state">In a disastrous state</a>, Sonia Awale  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/2023042511048_9aa0b70acc2841793563e20f10246affe376fde62599a7b5595aead1fb47bdf0.jpg" data-media-id="editor_5" data-image-id="2023042511048_9aa0b70acc2841793563e20f10246affe376fde62599a7b5595aead1fb47bdf0" data-rendition-name="original" width="2048" height="1536" loading="lazy" alt="Dang NT 1"> </figure>  Former vice-chair of the National Planning Commission Pitamber Sharma blames the government arbitrarily approving designs without understanding the local needs and social history.&nbsp; Before planning a new integrated settlement, he says, it would have been necessary to study whether it was suitable for the family for whom the house was to be built, how far the farms are from the settlement, and the livelihood of the people. “Not enough homework was done to address the social, cultural, and economic background of the people who have lived there for generations,” explains Sharma. Sociologist Meena Poudel says that villagers do not feel comfortable in an integrated settlement because social and cultural ties are severed in the name of modernity, engineering, and subsidies. “People cannot live in narrow houses that are too far away from where they originally lived,” says Poudel. “People do not like development that disrupts their social, cultural, and religious relations and beliefs.” The former CEO of NRA, Sushil Gyewali says that the houses were made smaller because there was not enough money, and admitted that integrating the livelihood aspects in the new designs were never implemented.&nbsp; Gyewali adds, “If the plan was implemented properly, there would not have been complaints like this.” And that begs the question: why were the new designs not implemented properly by the NRA? The answer could be frequent changes in political appointees to head the NRA after 2015 that broke the continuity in planning. &nbsp;&nbsp; Read also: <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/opinion/comment/turkey-and-nepal-face-similar-seismic-risks">Turkey and Nepal face similar seismic risks</a>, Surya Narayan Shrestha

Building back (not) better after 2015

Commemorating the eighth anniversary of the 2015 earthquakes is a time to mourn the loss of lives, and recall the resolve of people and institutions who came together during that national calamity for reconstruction and recovery. But most of all, it is a chance to make Nepal resilient and sustainable against similar future shocks in the coming decade of BS 2080s and beyond. Over the past decade, Nepal has been struck by one disaster after another: the 2015 earthquakes, the Covid-19 pandemic, the biggest dengue outbreak in 2022, unprecedented loss and damage from floods and landslides, fires, avalanches, Glacial Lake Outburst Floods, a rare tornado in the Tarai that levelled villages in 2019, locust infestation, highway fatalities, aviation disasters.&nbsp; During the very first week into New Year BS 2080, we topped global charts for the worst air quality due to widespread wildfires across the country. Just in 2021, three climate-related disasters brought heavy rains, floods, landslides, debris-flows and wildfires that claimed hundreds of lives, destroyed thousands of homes including schools, bridges, government buildings and hydropower stations. Other slow-onset disasters such as the aggradation of river bed and ‘flash’ droughts have led to the forced migration of hundreds of settlements. Disasters and climate change-induced loss and damage in the last decade have stretched our idea of what these impacts can do and how we can cope. Read also: <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/back-to-classroom-for-earthquake-preparedness">Back to classroom for earthquake preparedness</a>, Rachael Lau&nbsp; After 2015, the National Reconstruction Authority (NRA) set an example of planned and systematic reconstruction within a tight deadline. Local governments in new federal structure performed well in Covid-19 recovery. The fast-paced reconstruction of the Bara-Parsa tornado helped people get shelter before the monsoon.&nbsp; In 2017 Nepal’s Parliament endorsed the Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Act, which led to the creation of Nepal’s National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Authority (NDRRMA). The Act and the establishment of NDRRMA in December 2019 signals a paradigm shift in Nepal's approach to disaster risk management: from being mostly response-centric to prioritisation of understanding risk, improved governance, financing, including preparedness for effective response, early warning system, recovery and reconstruction. The NDRRMA has not only taken on the NRA's remaining task of reconstruction, but also has a responsibility to increase resilience during future disasters. In a short span of three years, it has collated nationwide multi-hazard risk information and made it available through the <a href="https://bipadportal.gov.np/">Bipad Portal</a>. Municipal governments have been trained to enter risk and open space information (below).  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/2023042512044_0ea0235e25f046cfaf8f25617e0dece4b8d5f6185a01f4b1f882169a650570b2.jpg" data-media-id="editor_2" data-image-id="2023042512044_0ea0235e25f046cfaf8f25617e0dece4b8d5f6185a01f4b1f882169a650570b2" data-rendition-name="original" width="986" height="531" loading="lazy" alt="Credit: NDRRMA"> <figcaption>Credit: NDRRMA</figcaption> </figure>  All 753 local governments contribute to the disaster risk, hazard, exposure and vulnerability information including the down-to-the-household information on disaggregated information by gender, age and disabilities. The technical teams have been deployed to undertake risk assessment in areas impacted by landslides and floods. The use of satellite imagery and drones including for land displacement to assess complex risks has begun. A <a href="https://vms.ndrrma.gov.np/">national volunteer bureau management information system</a> that houses more than one hundred thousand trained volunteers has been established. The volunteers are mobilised under the municipal leader’s command. Similarly, information of stockpiles and search and rescue equipment are housed in a <a href="https://godam.ndrrma.gov.np/">resource management system</a>. Building on the NRA’s experience of owner driven reconstruction, the Executive Committee led by the Minister of Home Affairs has endorsed a nationwide reconstruction of private households damaged by floods and landslides. &nbsp;Reconstruction of thousands of homes have begun using the World Bank-supported loan. Read also: <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/in-a-disastrous-state">In a disastrous state</a>, Sonia Awale But making Nepal’s mountains, hills and plains more resilient to climate-induced disasters will also require investment and increased capacity. Since the 2015 earthquakes, there have been moderate-intensity earthquakes in Lamjung, Bhojpur and Khotang. The recent Doti-Bajura earthquake in November 2022 killed six people and thousands of houses were destroyed or damaged, many of them public buildings. Apart from the immediate response and relief we have not been able to support the reconstruction of houses and infrastructure there. A nationwide assessment of Emergency Preparedness for Response prioritised five key areas for improvement. Nepal requires nearly $200 million just for preparedness and response till 2030. Setting up a nationwide multi-hazard early warning system that considers key service sectors such as disaster management, transport, agriculture, hydropower dam operations and water management will require another $600 million. These priorities are being woven into a National Disaster Resilience Framework that includes the role of all levels of government, financing needs, roles and responsibilities of relevant agencies and means to track progress over time till 2030. In September 2021, Nepal and 17 of its development partners endorsed the Kathmandu Declaration on Green, Resilient and Inclusive Development (GRID) which involves a fundamental shift in managing risk and development: from a basic reactive response mode to a deliberate proactive risk reduction and recovery strategy for long-term growth, climate action and sustainable development for all. The Finance Ministry, with support from development partners, has started developing a ten-year GRID Strategic Action Plan and identifying new investments and policies for building resilience. The Nepal government and partners like the Asian Development Bank, World Bank, International Monetary Fund and UN, as well as Australia, the European Union, Finland, France, Germany, Norway, South Korea, Switzerland, The United Kingdom and the United States have identified up to $4.2 billion in potential future support, in addition to the $3.2 billion already committed to GRID for Nepal. In the Nepali 2080s decade, we will need to learn our lessons from the 2015 earthquakes and climate change impacts to focus on building a green, resilient and inclusive country to minimise loss and damage. Read also: <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/opinion/comment/turkey-and-nepal-face-similar-seismic-risks">Turkey and Nepal face similar seismic risks</a>, Surya Narayan Shrestha

Anil Pokhrel

#NepalQuake 8 years later

Nearly 9,000 people were killed and three times as many were injured in the 25 April 2015 earthquake. Over 750,000 buildings were damaged or destroyed, including 8,000 <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/quake-was-a-learning-experience-for-nepal-s-schools">schools</a> and 30,000 classrooms.
Many thousands of lives of children were saved because the quake struck at noon on a Saturday, when schools were closed and many people were not at home.
Eight years later, the physical scars of the 2015 earthquake are still visible in Kathmandu Valley and surrounding district towns. Residential buildings are still being reconstructed, monuments are in scaffolding, and there are abandoned structures.&nbsp;
Read also: <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/in-a-disastrous-state">In a disastrous state</a>, Sonia Awale
Even if many of the buildings and school infrastructure wait to be reinforced, and building codes implemented, one of the best outcomes has been in disaster education.
Nepal’s schools have been involved in training search and rescue (SAR) volunteers, spreading earthquake response awareness in primary school classrooms. Proper disaster education helps everyone: children and older generations alike.
The <a href="https://www.nset.org.np/nset2012/">National Society for Earthquake Technology</a>, Nepal (NSET) creates and distributes earthquake education materials every year as part of its Earthquake Safety Day Campaign on 15 January every year, the day that commemorates the 8.3 magnitude earthquake in 1934 that destroyed much of Kathmandu.&nbsp;
Read also: <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/banner/earthquake-vacates-villages-in-nepal">Earthquake vacates villages in Nepal</a>
Over the past several years NSET has conducted disaster response campaigns around Nepal focusing on strengthening community-based response in subjects like search and rescue, and rapid seismic damage assessment – all with the goal of building capacity at the community-level for disaster response.
In the 2015 Gorkha earthquake alone, of the 22,326 rescued alive, approximately 17,887 were saved at the community and individual level. National <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/banner/miracle-boy-six-years-after-nepal-quake">search and rescue</a> teams as well as international agencies also played their part. The Armed Police Force and other security agencies rescued over 4,420 lives and international SAR teams rescued 19. These rescues were often in situations that were inaccessible to community members – primarily those trapped in the rubble of collapsed concrete structures.
Read also: <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/?p=25092&amp;preview=true" target="_blank">Lessons Unlearnt</a>, Editorial
Disaster education can exist at the grassroots level as well. Most recently, third- and fourth-year civil engineering students from Institute of Engineering (IoE), in Pulchok began conducting training seminars for students and teachers at government secondary schools around Kathmandu.
Young Nepali engineers designed pamphlets and posters which they delivered and explained to students and teachers, even providing tools from the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Authority (NDRRMA) for Nepal’s hard-of-hearing and deaf communities to improve accessibility since disaster impacts everyone.
The students leveraged their backgrounds in engineering to explain the physics of an earthquake, as well as <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/banner/foundations-for-sustainable-buildings-in-nepal">concrete action to mitigating risk</a> and earthquake response. They created interactive games to quiz grade school students on what they had learned – tailoring their speech and lessons to younger audiences.&nbsp;
Read also: <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/banner/preserving-patan-post-earthquake">Preserving Patan post-earthquake</a>
Free training for educators on how to make their classrooms more earthquake-safe were also conducted, as well as providing tips on how to talk to younger generations about <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/lessons-not-learned-from-2015-o2etq6zu">disaster risk</a>, especially for students who may not remember the 2015 earthquake.
“It is important to educate young people about earthquake preparedness,” says Sagar Khanal, a fourth year engineering student. “There was positive feedback from students and teachers and it showed it was useful. This experience has strengthened our resolve to make a positive impact in our community”.
From the achievements of larger organisations like NSET to a more grassroots approach by the next-generation of engineers and everything in between, the disaster education experience in Nepal has been positive.&nbsp;
Read also: <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/opinion/comment/turkey-and-nepal-face-similar-seismic-risks">Turkey and Nepal face similar seismic risks</a>, Surya Narayan Shrestha

Rachael Lau

Back to classroom for earthquake preparedness

<figure><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221114111152/63721e249c7e80680e0bd52bjpeg.jpg" alt="" width="946" height="1261"/><figcaption>SCENIC, BUT ALSO SEISMIC: Kyanjin in Langtang Valley has resurrected after the 2015 earthquake, but even in this remote area, most of the rebuilt hotels are multistorey concrete structures. Cement and steel rods were lifted there by helicopter. The new buildings have also changed the cultural landscape of this ancient monastery village. Photo: KUNDA DIXIT</figcaption></figure>The reconstruction of <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/nation/building-back-unsafe,3674" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">private and public buildings damaged in the 2015 earthquake</a> is nearly complete. Now it is time to also focus on being prepared for the next big disaster.Himalayan seismologists have long warned that a megaquake is overdue in western Nepal. The last big earthquake to hit the region was in 1205, and it was so powerful that it killed a king in Kathmandu, and set off a cataclysmic avalanche to create Pokhara and its lakes.So much tectonic tension has accumulated below <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/epicentre-of-two-disasters-in-west-nepal/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">western Nepal</a> since that it is ready to snap. A 8+ magnitude earthquake there will also shake up the rest of the country as well as northern India. It is not a matter of if, but when.“We have done a commendable job with <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/banner/restoring-a-piece-of-nepals-history/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">reconstruction</a> given the scale of the disaster in 2015, but outside of those 14 districts we are not prepared at all for the next big quake,” warns Surya Narayan Shrestha of the National Society for Earthquake Technology (NSET).The importance of preparedness was highlighted by the fact that schools retrofitted by NSET all survived the 2015 earthquake. They even served as shelters as <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/editorial/concrete-planning/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">aftershocks</a> rocked the region.Read also: <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/banner/falling-through-the-cracks/">Falling through the cracks</a>, Sahina Shrestha<img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221114111152/63721e289c7e80680e0bd52cjpeg.jpg" alt="" width="1750" height="645">Adds Shrestha: “Retrofitting public buildings should be the topmost priority now, it is the best cost-effective solution for a seismically active and resource limited country like ours. So in the next 10-15 years, we must take up a campaign to continually retrofit schools across Nepal.”The fact that most <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/editorial/concrete-planning/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">reinforced concrete</a> structures survived the 2015 earthquake convinced Nepalis that cement houses are stronger. As the road network expands, cement has now reached the remotest parts of Nepal – but experts warn that if the raw materials do not meet quality standards and proper construction methods are not followed, concrete structures can be even more dangerous in an earthquake.“Cement and concrete have given people a false sense of security after 2015,” says Anil Pokhrel of the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Authority (NDRRMA). “We have to enforce building codes through the municipalities by giving them clear roles, technical know-how, and financial and human resources.”Indeed, the Authority is getting ready for the next big earthquake by spending Rs350 million to buy rescue equipment for collapsed concrete structures, and training Armed Police Force (APF) and Nepal Army on how to use them.Public misconception about concrete, coupled with people forgetting the horror of 25 April 2015, has led to<a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/deadly-monsoon-in-nepal-turns-deadlier/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer"> haphazard growth and construction</a> in Kathmandu Valley. It is not earthquakes that kill people, but poorly built houses.<img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221114111152/63721e2b9c7e80680e0bd52djpeg.jpg" alt="" width="412" height="198">The Gongabu neighbourhood of Kathmandu saw <a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/blogs/thebrief/2015/05/01/deceived-and-dead/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">hundreds of casualties</a> when concrete structures with weak foundations and illegally added floors flattened like pancakes seven years ago. In Dhapakhel, an eight-storey engineering college collapsed into a heap of rubble.Read also: <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/editorial/concrete-planning/">Concrete planning</a>, EditorialIf it was not a Saturday, the death toll of 8,890 in the 2015 earthquake would have been several times higher. More than 7,000 schools were either destroyed or severely damaged in the quake.“Public memory of a disaster usually lasts four years, and people now are a lot less careful about raw material and construction methods,” adds Pokhrel.Increasing urban pressure has meant that people in Kathmandu and other cities have <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/banner/lessons-not-learned-from-2015/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">forgotten the lessons learned</a>, and have gone back to constructing substandard structures flouting building codes.Warns NSET’s Shrestha: “We are haphazardly building concrete structures again. The next earthquake above 8 magnitude probable in western Nepal could be a catastrophe."In Kathmandu Valley, the <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/khokana-and-bungamati-strive-to-save-heritage/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">rebuilding of ancient towns</a> like Sankhu, Bungamati, Harisiddhi and Tokha that were destroyed in 2015 has been slower than that of the Darbar Squares of Patan or Bhaktapur. And here the challenge is to maintain the original architectural heritage of the historic towns.Harisiddhi was the first town to come up with a technical proposal to retain its traditional Newa skyline, but without much success, admits engineer Bijay Maharjan.Read also: <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/opinion/rebuilding-resilience-7-years-later/">Rebuilding resilience 7 years later</a>, Anil Pokhrel<figure><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221114111152/63721e2c9c7e80680e0bd52ejpeg.jpg" alt="" width="960" height="640"><figcaption> </figcaption></figure>“A lot of people are now aware that they have to build safer houses and they also use higher quality construction materials, but we largely failed to maintain traditional architecture which are more costly,” he adds.Harisiddhi Ward 29 chair Ganesh Kumar Maharjan is planning to recontest in the <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/banner/nepals-local-election-gives-power-back-to-people/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">May local elections</a>, and when asked if his town is prepared for the next big earthquake, he says, “In Nepal, we are always waiting for the next big one, and we can never be fully prepared. Our preparedness should not just be awareness but real work on the ground.”Nearby, the chair of Harisiddhi’s Ward 28 Rajesh Maharjan wants to provide alternative income generation sources to prevent local communities from selling their ancestral land to developers.Seven years after 2015, and despite successes in reconstruction, building standards are poor. <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/editorial/lessons-still-not-learnt/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Much more needs to be done</a> to enforce seismic resistant structures, and invest in preparedness.Says Surya Narayan Shrestha: “We are in the business of saving lives. All municipalities across Nepal need to mandatorily enforce building codes with strict monitoring. That is the only way we can prevent buildings from killing people in the next earthquake.”Read more: <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/banner/the-history-of-heritage/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">The history of heritage</a>, Ashish Dhakal

Concrete lessons of 2015

<figure><img width="2067" height="1494" src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221114111152/63721e209c7e80680e0bd529jpeg.jpg" alt=""/><figcaption>Nepali Times editorial #740 9-15 January 2015</figcaption></figure>On 25 April 2015 at exactly 11:56, the ground beneath Kathmandu Valley started shaking. Houses built on the soft alluvium of the former lakebed bobbed and swayed like boats in the sea.Brick and clay <a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/nation/Monumental-loss,2215" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">monuments and homes collapsed</a> in clouds of dust. Had the duration, intensity and frequency of the earthquake been more severe, reinforced concrete buildings would have also come down. Because cement houses were spared, the <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/nation/Search-locate-%20rescue-in-collapsed-concrete-houses,3676" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">public perception</a> is that reinforced concrete buildings can withstand severe earthquakes.Read also: <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/opinion/rebuilding-resilience-7-years-later/">Rebuilding resilience 7 years later</a>, Anil PokhrelWhile that is partly true, if the shaking had gone on for more than 1 minute, if it was 8 magnitude or more, or if the frequency of the shock waves was different, many of Kathmandu’s <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/nation/building-back-unsafe,3674" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">concrete structures would have also come down</a>. Much of the <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/banner/restoring-a-piece-of-nepals-history/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">reconstruction</a> after the 2015 earthquake is now complete, although there are still families waiting for money to rebuild. But we still have to be prepared for the next one. And the way to be ready is to retrofit schools and hospitals, ensure open spaces for shelters, and preposition rescue equipment, water and other essentials. Teams need training in Collapsed Structure Search and Rescue. Compared to older buildings,<a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/editorial/mind-the-gap/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer"> search and rescue</a> inside the pancaked ruin of a reinforced concrete high-rise is a whole different exercise.Most of the concrete structures that collapsed in 2015 were illegally built high-rise blocks in Gongabu. Ironically, an eight storey engineering college in Dhapasi was also reduced to rubble. Its building permit was only for three floors. Read also: <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/banner/falling-through-the-cracks/">Falling through the cracks</a>, Sahina Shrestha <img width="412" height="198" src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221114111152/63721e239c7e80680e0bd52ajpeg.jpg" alt="">Had the earthquake struck on a weekday, hundreds of students and staff would have been inside the college. Tens of thousands of students across central Nepal were saved because the disaster happened on a weekend.  Concrete structure rescue needs specialised robo-worm cameras, snake-eye acoustic, thermal and motion sensors, and human life detector tools like continuous wave Doppler radar and equipment to measure carbon dioxide levels from survivors. Fortunately, the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Authority (NDRRMA) is putting together a wish list of Rs350 million for such specialised equipment, and has already started training search and rescue teams from the Armed Police Force and Nepal Army. Their role will be vital in finding and extricating survivors.  This is not panic mongering. We look back at 2015 in this issue of Nepali Times in order to ensure that state agencies and the public start <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/editorial/lessons-still-not-learnt/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">preparing to be prepared</a>. What happened in Gongabu is a microcosm of what the aftermath of a future mega quake in Nepal will look like.  In January 2015, four months before the earthquake, <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/editorial/earthquakes-dont-kill-people-weak-houses-and-bad-planning-do,1930" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">we reported in this space</a> that earthquakes are not 'natural' disasters, they kill people because of weak buildings. An 8+ magnitude earthquake could occur in western Nepal at any time.  Read also: <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/banner/the-history-of-heritage/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">The history of heritage</a>, Ashish Dhakal Concrete is good if quality standards are met, the steel rods are properly installed, and building codes are adhered to. But many pre- and post-2015 structures in Kathmandu do not meet these criteria. Things are far worse in western Nepal. If new reinforced concrete houses are not properly made, you do not even need a 7 magnitude earthquake to bring them down. In the 2015 earthquake, nearly 4,000 emergency crew from 19 countries arrived in Kathmandu with Concrete Structure Search and Rescue equipment. Much of it was not needed. It was local first responders, Nepal Police and Army that rescued 5,000 survivors with simple shovels and spades. Next time, it may not be so easy.  The 7th anniversary of the 2015 disaster is also a time to <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/epicentre-of-two-disasters-in-west-nepal/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">turn our attention to western Nepal</a>, and start with retrofitting schools and hospitals, and enforcing building codes. Although 7,000 schools were damaged in 2015, most of those that had been retrofitted survived intact.  We know what to do. We just need to do it before the next one. Read more: <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/nepals-traditional-seismic-resistant-designs/">Nepal’s traditional seismic resistant designs</a>, Sheilin Teo

Concrete planning

<figure><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221110141152/636d02439c7e80680e0a3670jpeg.jpg" alt="" width="1280" height="960"/><figcaption>Photo: HABITAT FOR HUMANITY NEPAL</figcaption></figure>Bamboo, the perennial and plentiful plant, is the next big thing in sustainable construction.For centuries, bamboo had been used for traditional ceremonies and as the primary material for building homes in local communities, especially in Eastern Nepal.So, why has bamboo not been taken more seriously as a mainstream construction material? Public perception and awareness have a part to play.It starts with the perception that bamboo is the ‘poor man’s timber’. This means not many people are aware that bamboo is one of the most robust materials for construction if the right species is used together with the appropriate techniques.According to a 2019 report by the Asian Disaster Preparedness Centre, treated bamboo wall panels can last up to 20 years. Bamboo treatment ranges from traditional practices such as river washing and smoking to using chemical preservatives made with boron salts or Solignum.Apart from high tensile and compressive strength, bamboo is known for its shrinkage, resistibility, elasticity, and its low weight, making it <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/nepals-traditional-seismic-resistant-designs/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">suitable building material</a> for seismically active zones like Nepal.When the earthquake struck Nepal in 2015, nearly ten thousand Nepalis lost their lives and many more were injured, trapped under collapsed homes. Some 600,000 buildings were partially or completely damaged by the tremors.Well other factors played a part, construction and structural deficiencies caused much damage to unreinforced masonry, stone and asobe buildings in central and eastern Nepal.In addition to being a superior construction material, bamboo is also ecologically sound. The fast-growing bamboo generates 35% more oxygen than trees. As bamboo products used to build a house can be recycled, hazardous construction waste can also be reduced.<img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221110141152/636d02479c7e80680e0a3671jpeg.jpg" alt="" width="1500" height="1000"><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221110141152/636d024b9c7e80680e0a3672jpeg.jpg" alt="" width="1500" height="1000">Photos: HABITAT FOR HUMANITY NEPALThe Global Status Report by the United Nations in 2019 stated that buildings and construction account for nearly 40% of energy-related carbon dioxide emissions worldwide. The shift to environmentally-friendly building technology to reduce carbon footprints is another bonus of bamboo.For some time,  groups such as India's National Bamboo Mission and the International Network for Bamboo and Rattan based in China’s Beijing have promoted the sustainable use of bamboo.World Bamboo Day falls on Saturday, 18 September and has been used to highlight the ecological and economic benefits of this versatile plant.Here in Nepal, we are not ignorant of bamboo’s enormous potential. At construction firms like Adobe and Bamboo Research Institute (ABARI) and non-profit Habitat for Humanity Nepal, bamboo is promoted as a sustainable building material. Besides construction, the versatile bamboo has diversified uses, ranging from bridges and scaffolding to its application in furniture, handicrafts and even bicycles.But, promoting bamboo as a sustainable resource a collective effort, not an individual mission. Therefore, the proponents of bamboo need to have a unified voice, actively coordinating and engaging with myriad actors to achieve scalable partnerships.Although there is no lack of research papers on harvesting, types, and uses of bamboo, studies typically don't tell delve into factors such as market demand, supply chains, and opportunities for scaled impact.When it comes to the use of bamboo in home construction, we also need to address people’s perception that it is an inferior material. We can tap into strong advocates that have demonstrated innovative ways of building with bamboo. Madan Puraskar Library in Patan Dhoka is one that was rebuilt after the earthquake with bamboo and rammed-earth.Would we rather build a bamboo home that lasts longer or a concrete block that might not survive the next big earthquake? The choice should be obvious.<img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221110141152/636d024e9c7e80680e0a3673jpeg.jpg" alt="" width="640" height="427">Tripti Mahaseth is an architect and urban planner who leads the bamboo housing project at Habitat for Humanity Nepal providing safe, durable, and affordable treated bamboo solutions in the Eastern Tarai.<img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221110141152/636d02509c7e80680e0a3674jpeg.jpg" alt="" width="87" height="109"><h2>Wild about bamboo</h2><h2>Nepali bamboo is good enough to eat</h2><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221110141152/636d02519c7e80680e0a3675jpeg.jpg" alt="" width="1920" height="1280">It is said Nepali culture demands bamboo from birth to death and everything in between. We use bamboo as scaffolding material, as food, for music, to carry things and to write with.Nepal has over 80 species of bamboo. In fact, for just 0.1% of the planet’s land area, Nepal has 5% of the world’s bamboo, further signifying the Himalayan nation’s rich biodiversity.Most Nepali bamboo types are found in the wetter middle and eastern regions of the country from 50m-4,000m, with Ilam, Dhankuta, Bhojpur and Taplejung having the sturdiest stems.Global bamboo market is worth $72.10 billion and Nepal can be a key player in the international bamboo and cane trade. Bamboo also has a huge potential for rural enterprise and poverty alleviation.Bamboo promotes sustainable, integrated farming systems and is also an excellent resource for income and employment generation. One hectare of bamboo can earn a farmer at least Rs400,000 per year.The beauty of bamboo is that it is fast-growing, needs little maintenance, can grow on forest margins and requires only modest investment.Some communities in Nepal, like the Dom Dalits in the Tarai, are completely dependant on the bamboo, making their living from weaving mats from nigalo. Many Rai and Limbu communities in the east also rely on bamboo, and are expert weavers of doko and dalo for the local market.Bamboo has been recognised as an 'international commodity' and the plant has been used widely to build homes, resorts and galleries. The 12th World Bamboo Congress to be held in Taiwan this September has been postponed once again due to the on-going global Covid-19 pandemic. But events like the World Bamboo Day on 18 September every year highlights the economic and ecological significance of the plant.In terms of quality, Nepali bamboo is as good as, if not better than most. And we are still finding new uses for this versatile plant. For instance, bamboo is the best 'carbon sink' for greenhouse gases putting out 35% more oxygen than other trees and every hectare of bamboo soaks up 12 tons of carbon dioxide every year.Food For the Japanese, Taiwanese, Chinese, Thai, and Nepalis, bamboo shoots are a staple diet. Nepal produces at least 102 tons of tama and each household consumes about 46 stems a year. It is a good source of fibre, carbohydrate, vegetable fat, protein and vitamin B.Timber Strong but flexible and incredibly versatile, bamboo is an excellent alternative to wood. With a tensile strength of 28,000 per square inch, it's even a stronger building material than steel. Bamboo homes only need an eighth of the energy concrete requires to create building material with the same capacity. To top it off, it is also the quickest growing plant in the world and can be harvested in three years for building. This capacity to regenerate and its yields, which can be up to 25 times more than timber when well managed, makes bamboo an environmentally sound choice. Bamboo homes, light and elastic, are also earthquake resistant.Green In a country as vertical as Nepal, bamboo is also great for soil conservation. Growing in mixed cultures, it is naturally less likely to cause soil erosion than monocultural farming. Bamboo creates a mat-like structure underground, effectively stitching the soil together, it is perfect for fragile river banks, deforested areas, earthquake zones and preventing mud slides.Paper Bamboo has been used for making paper since the second century. At one point, this renewable resource was used to make 70% of India's paper.Medicine Ancient Ayurvedic and Chinese healing traditions have used the medicinal properties of bamboo. In acupuncture, bamboo secretion is powdered and hardened and used internally to treat asthma, coughs and as an aphrodisiac. Black bamboo root is used to treat kidney disease. In Ayurveda, bamboo manna is a rejuvenating herb for sore throats.Based on an<a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id=4149#.YUSG6S2B2t9"> original article</a> in Nepali Times by Sraddha Basnyat. _________________<h2>Sustainable and spectacular</h2><figure><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221110141152/636d02549c7e80680e0a3676jpeg.jpg" alt="" width="2048" height="1365"><figcaption> </figcaption></figure>Bamboo is no longer a poor man's construction material, architects have used the versatile plant to design some prime properties around the world ranging from quaint and beautiful resorts, hotels and restaurants to green schools, art galleries, and residential apartment buildings.<figure><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221110141152/636d02589c7e80680e0a3677jpeg.jpg" alt="" width="2288" height="2144"><figcaption> </figcaption></figure>Some prime examples are: Bangkok Tree House resort, Naman Retreat and Kontum Indochine Café in Vietnam, architect Edouard François’ 10-storey residential Flower Tower in Paris and IBUKU designed forest getaway Sharma Springs in Bali.Bamboo is making waves and is very much in demand, in particular for its environmentally-friendly features.<h2>IKUBU</h2>IBUKU is a team of designers, architects and engineers based in Bali, pioneering in building Bamboo-based structures. It was founded by Canadian designer Elora Hardy, who is known for designing a community of bamboo homes near Denpasar in Bali.<figure><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221110141152/636d025b9c7e80680e0a3678jpeg.jpg" alt="" width="1503" height="1000"><figcaption> </figcaption></figure>In April, John Hardy partnered with  Elora Hardy and Arief Rabik to further the efforts of bamboo reforestation through their continued Wear Bamboo, Plant Bamboo program.Elora’s father John Hardy has planted over 1.3 million bamboo in Indonesia since 2007 in partnership with the Environmental Bamboo Foundation. For every handcrafted bamboo piece sold, bamboo seedlings are planted in Indonesia under the foundation’s Bamboo Village Initiative.<h2>The Arc at Green School, Bali</h2>It is only fitting that the Arc in Bali has a bamboo building that employs the latest construction technologies. It is the newest structure on campus and is a community wellness space and gymnasium for the school. The Arc, a collaboration between Jorg Stamm and Atelier One, is built from a series of intersecting 14m bamboo arches spanning 19m, interconnected by anticlastic gridshells  that derive their strengths from curving in two opposite directions.<figure><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221110141152/636d025f9c7e80680e0a3679jpeg.jpg" alt="" width="1280" height="854"><figcaption> </figcaption></figure>The highlight of the new building is that it creates large spaces with minimal structure, for which it draws its inspiration from a human ribcage. At the Arc, arches working in compression are held in place by tensioned anticlastic gridshells. These appear to drape across the spaces between impossibly thin arches soaring overhead, giving an intimacy and beauty to the space. Although the gridshells appear to hang from the arches, they actually hold them up.This project has been longlisted in the Sustainable Building Category of Dezeen Awards 2021.<h2>Bocas Treehouse, Bocas Del Toro, Panama</h2><figure><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221110141152/636d02629c7e80680e0a367ajpeg.jpg" alt="" width="1280" height="756"><figcaption> </figcaption></figure>On the remote Frangipani Island in Bocas Del Toro, Panama lies a self-sustaining eco-resort, 100% off the grid, soon growing to incorporate IBUKU-designed tree houses for a customised experience of luxury nature for locals and tourists alike, with the spectacular views of the ocean through the canopy on the mangrove island.The will feature a fusion of local bamboo and greenheart timber, with an interior from Bamboo Pure Workshop in Bali. IBUKU is in the schematic design phase of this project collaborating with Mar Azul, Summer House and Jose Agustín Almario.

Building back better (and stronger) with bamboo

<figure><img width="960" height="720" src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221110141132/636cfdc59c7e80680e0a0c02jpeg.jpg" alt=""/><figcaption>Suman Thapa conducting an eye examination on a patient at Chaurjhari Hospital in Rukum, where EK Ek Paila is working with the local government. Photos: EK EK PAILA</figcaption></figure>It is the aftermath of disasters that <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/lockdown-brings-out-the-best-in-nepalis/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">bring out the best among Nepalis</a>. And so it was after the <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/latest/reviewing-lessons-of-the-2015-nepal-earthquake/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">2015 earthquake</a>, volunteer groups sprang up spontaneously and organised relief through social media.Among them was a loosely structured group of like-minded Nepalis who used their medical expertise to provide emergency help to areas destroyed by the earthquakes. But while many such volunteer groups faded away, the volunteers continued to expand their work — calling themselves Ek Ek Paila (one step at a time).“After seeing the devastation in 2015, I thought it’d be best to use my expertise to provide medical help and do more rather than just provide relief,” says <a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id=11828#.YSRhqS8w3u0" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Suman Thapa</a>, an ophthalmologist who helped set up Ek Ek Paila.  Now, with the pandemic, Ek Ek Paila has been trying to bring health services to parts of Nepal which have rudimentary medical care even at the best of times. “After hearing about infected people having virtually no access to Covid-19 treatment in rural areas where we had previously held health camps, we created a Covid Health Package and took it to them,” Thapa adds.<a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/latest/rural-nepal-fights-back-covid-19/">Rural Nepal fights back Covid-19</a>, Masta KC <figure><img width="1000" height="745" src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221110141132/636cfdc89c7e80680e0a0c03jpeg.jpg" alt=""><figcaption> </figcaption></figure>The package consists of medication, relevant information, and a direct hotline to volunteer doctors to answer any questions they might have about symptoms, tests and vaccines. The demand for the packages has now snowballed, with local governments in more districts approaching for help. Ek Ek Paila raised Rs7 million for the distribution of the Covid Health Packages — all from local donations. In fact, that is what makes the non-profit different from most other charities in Nepal, it relies almost completely on donations from Nepalis. “If foreigners and international organisations want to donate to Ek Ek Paila, we do not say no,” Thapa explains. “But 99% of the funding for Ek Ek Paila comes from local donors.” The fact that Thapa is also an accomplished musician, and a lead guitarist in the band ‘The Blue Fret’ helps with fund-raising concerts. “I had always wanted to be a musician, and being a doctor was actually the next best thing for me,” admits Thapa, grinning through his mask during a recent interview at Ek Ek Paila’s new Community Health Centre in Kathmandu.Ek Ek Paila had a humble start after the earthquake six years ago. Thapa contacted some friends and found fellow doctors who committed to spending one weekend a month for a year to provide medical care to <a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/blogs/kundadixit/2015/05/18/survivors-help-survivors/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">survivors</a> in remote villages <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/banner/langtang-copes-with-quake-and-covid/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">badly hit by the earthquakes</a>. In the first year alone, Ek Ek Paila organised 12 health camps in Sindhupalcok, Dolakha, and other districts. <figure><img width="1000" height="707" src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221110141132/636cfdcb9c7e80680e0a0c04jpeg.jpg" alt=""><figcaption> </figcaption></figure>Nepal’s mountainous terrain has posed a <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/environmental-destruction-is-a-medical-emergency/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">significant challenge in health care delivery</a>, made worse by government neglect and poor governance, and exacerbated during crises like the earthquake and pandemic.   All medical professionals who volunteered at health camps paid for their own trips, equipment, and even for the medicine that they prescribed. But after the 12 health camps, the regular volunteers decided to officially register Ek Ek Paila, creating a Nepali-driven and funded organisation to expand its services. Today, volunteer doctors and medical personnel also perform surgeries, including <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/banner/nepals-far-sighted-eye-care/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">complex eye operations</a>, in rural health camps and carry more equipment with them, increasing diagnostic accuracy. Ek Ek Paila’s camps have become mobile primary health care centres.   <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/banner/this-is-how-to-upgrade-nepals-rural-health/">This is how to upgrade Nepal’s rural health</a>, Sewa Bhattarai “What has made our work easier despite the political paralysis in Kathmandu is that with federalism, local governments are empowered and collaborate in holding health camps,” says Thapa, who has experience with rural health camps organised by <a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/Nepali-Times%20Buzz/sanduk%C2%ADruit%C2%ADtilganga,2574" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Sanduk Ruit</a> of the Tilganga Institute of Ophthalmology.  Local governments top up the donations from the Ek Ek Paila members themselves and other local funding to run the camps. They provide Ek Ek Paila teams of 30 or so people with accommodation and two meals a day. They also help organise the space in which the health program is conducted and help disseminate information.  <figure><img width="1000" height="705" src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221110141132/636cfdcf9c7e80680e0a0c05jpeg.jpg" alt=""><figcaption> </figcaption></figure>Ek Ek Paila also collaborates with other non-profits like Sparsha Nepal and the ear-nose-throat surgery specialists, Impact Nepal. Ek Ek Paila’s new non-profit Community Health Centre in Thapathali provides affordable health care to those who cannot afford hospital fees. With the flow of patients increasing, and the challenge of making the centre sustainable a tier system for small consultation fees subsidises free treatment for those who cannot afford it.The Community Health Centre was funded through private donations, including the building itself which belongs to one of the founding members. Overhead costs are low because medical personnel all volunteer their services. Besides the vital service it provides, Ek Ek Paila has also led by example to foster <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/youth-led-feeding-campaign-spreads-across-nepal/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">volunteerism and philanthropy among Nepali </a>individuals and companies. Foreseeing the<a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/banner/vaccines-variants-and-a-third-wave/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer"> third wave</a>, Ek Ek Paila is expanding its Covid Health Packages to reach more people in hard-to-reach places. The non-profit also is in talks to manage primary health centres in Jajarkot and Sindhupalchok districts. Says Thapa: “Ek Ek Paila has brought Nepalis together from all walks of life, it has helped people in need of affordable health care and given donors and volunteers a sense of satisfaction for having contributed. As for me, this is the most fulfilling thing I have done in my life.”To donate to <a href="https://www.ekekpaila.org/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Ek Ek Paila</a>: <a href="https://www.ekekpaila.org/page/5/donate" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">https://www.ekekpaila.org/page/5/donate</a>

Step by step for rural health care in Nepal

Born in Khandbari in eastern Nepal, Parashuram Pathak helped his family around the farm, sold what they grew in the market and lent a hand in the kitchen.&nbsp; After working as a chef in Dubai, San Francisco, Denmark, Australia, and on cruise ships, Pathak has now brought back what he has learnt to the Tusa Restaurant in Bhaktapur that opened on Nepali New Year on 13 April. Tusa uses fresh indigenous ingredients from various parts of Nepal, and fuses them with international methods to produce unique dishes. Pathak is a global Nepali, and is introducing global Nepali cuisine to his homeland. Pathak left an executive chef job to intern at three-Michelin-starred Noma in Denmark, named the best restaurant in the world five times. Noma runs on a philosophy of foraging to rediscover wild local ingredients, and Tusa’s mission is similarly noble: preparing dishes with Nepali ingredients using modern techniques and equipment. “We are taking Nepali food beyond dal-bhat and momo, we are taking it international,” Pathak said on the phone from Sydney. Read also: <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/nepali-baker-rises-to-the-top-in-denmark">Denmark’s best baker is a Nepali</a>, Vishad Onta  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20240419180424_1312bc016cbb2fe59c6d4a78d1f8b463af4a10b3f79559a2405fd54ea5b3197a.jpg" data-media-id="editor_1" data-image-id="20240419180424_1312bc016cbb2fe59c6d4a78d1f8b463af4a10b3f79559a2405fd54ea5b3197a" data-rendition-name="original" width="801" height="802" loading="lazy" alt="The return of the natives Page 12 NT #1208"> <figcaption>Photo: PARASHURAM PATHAK/FACEBOOK</figcaption> </figure>  Pathak’s team in Nepal includes chefs Rupesh Bohara and Sagar Shrestha who have also worked extensively in Dubai and Australia, and share his vision. The three realised they shared the same dream, and over the past five years have travelled across Nepal to research their menu, collecting ingredients and ideas from homestays, food carts, and nature. The team then scouted for Nepal’s best architect, and zeroed in on Bhaktapur-based heritage conservationist Rabindra Puri who designed the Malla-era house for Tusa in the Nag Pokhari neighbourhood. Bohara and Shrestha have moved back to Nepal for good, and Pathak arrives in September. “I made dishes from all over the world, but when someone asked what Nepali food was like, I had no answer,” says Bohara, “I came back to find out.” &nbsp;“You can get citizenship, a green card, big houses and cars, but where is the self-satisfaction?” asks Shrestha, who has a red-and-blue chef’s knife with the sun and moon of the Nepali flag tattooed on his right forearm.&nbsp; Read also:<a href="https://nepalitimes.com/diaspora-diaries/the-return-of-a-master-baker"> The return of a master baker</a>, Raju Pakhrin  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20240419180424_c601264463e5a28d4e71a46781f340a53619a08d00949a7aaebfef84e75a319d.jpg" data-media-id="editor_3" data-image-id="20240419180424_c601264463e5a28d4e71a46781f340a53619a08d00949a7aaebfef84e75a319d" data-rendition-name="original" width="6000" height="4000" loading="lazy" alt="The return of the natives Page 12 NT #1208"> <figcaption>Photos: TUSA</figcaption> </figure>  Bohara and Shrestha passionately recount stories of their trips across Nepal, speaking of generous lodge owners who introduced them to local ingredients. Tusa can seat 28, and dining here is a sensory experience with a live kitchen. The chefs cook and place dishes on a large granite countertop with induction sections built in. Behind the counter is a grill on an indoor fire with pulley control to adjust the fire. Everything that can be made in Nepal — chairs and tables, ceramic dishes, the grill — is locally sourced. The executive kitchen/laboratory is downstairs. It is spacious, spotless, and contains appliances rarely seen in restaurants here: a sous vide machine that cooks vacuum-sealed packets at consistent temperatures, and a dehydrator for sisnu nettles. A fresh batch of deep purple kimbu (mulberry) muffins has just come out of the oven. Fridges have dry-aged fish and marigold kombucha. Fermentation seems to be the theme at Tusa, and Pathak explained: “Fermentation takes away the natural sugars in food, leaving behind a true, umami taste.”&nbsp; Read also: <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/vikings-khukri-passion">Viking's khukri passion</a>, Alisha Sijapati  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20240419180424_c59e2b4230864f646bc36108adb951e95ec85da6156740294b1ec715b86acf89.jpg" data-media-id="editor_5" data-image-id="20240419180424_c59e2b4230864f646bc36108adb951e95ec85da6156740294b1ec715b86acf89" data-rendition-name="original" width="5895" height="3930" loading="lazy" alt="The return of the natives Page 12 NT #1208"> </figure>  Tusa itself means ‘shoot’ in Nepali, and can be a dish of fermented bamboo shoots. The restaurant serves a tasting menu with six courses, plus surprises. It starts with a fermented potato and millet roti with charred green garlic and tomato chutney. The bread tastes like a mix of alu paratha and kodoko roti with a satisfying, mild flavour. The chefs do not show off, and overdo it. Dishes are tastefully simple and faithful, a theme that runs through the meal. The second course is a filet of fish charred on one side and placed in a broth. It is delicate and smokey, and does not mask the character of the fish.&nbsp; The next is Batuk Chukauni, a Magar dish with a lentil snack and a yoghurt-based potato achar. The batuk, made of lentil batter, is light and the chukauni has potatoes and peas. Read also: <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/money-is-not-everything-but-you-need-money-for-everything">"Money is not everything, but you need money for everything"</a>, Rohit Shrestha  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20240419180424_e3f51228ff792e8d4297f81f8e67d138584e922ae035d131977494219e5e85c5.jpg" data-media-id="editor_7" data-image-id="20240419180424_e3f51228ff792e8d4297f81f8e67d138584e922ae035d131977494219e5e85c5" data-rendition-name="original" width="1333" height="1000" loading="lazy" alt="The return of the natives Page 12 NT #1208"> <figcaption>Batuk Chukauni. Photo: VISHAD ONTA</figcaption> </figure>  Next is a skewer of jackfruit with a tamarind and mustard glaze that has the texture of a slice of sausage and melts in the mouth. Then comes the first off-menu item: a steak of watermelon, glazed and grilled, tasting sweet, sour and smokey. After that a palate cleanser sorbet made with laligurans syrup adorned with a frozen candied rhododendron petal. Finally the main course: barbeque chicken and chyakla coarse corn grits. The chicken has been brined, marinated, cooked sous-vide and seared on the grill. The delicate consistency of the chicken stands out. Desert is a smooth, creamy cheesecake that uses the local juju-dhau yoghurt. And the last course is a moist, moss-green sisnu cake laced with mulberry jam and cream.&nbsp; There is nothing gimmicky about Tusa. It is the coming together of skilled Nepalis with international exposure who have mixed what they have learnt abroad with the flavours of home.&nbsp; The tasting menu is Rs3,500, and it may take some time before Nepalis develop a predilection for some of its items. The chefs are excited, vindicated, and relieved. Coming back to Nepal, uprooting successful careers abroad to take a chance on Nepal must not have been easy.&nbsp; Tusa had a soft launch on New Year’s day with Kathmandu-based diplomats. Australian Ambassador Felicity Volk was one of them, and wrote on a Facebook post: ‘Chefs who honed their skills in Australia and returned to Nepal to give back. We call it fine dining, they call it #cominghome.’ Read also: <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/multimedia/the-baker-of-barpak">The baker of Barpak</a>, Tara Aryal Pandey

The return of the natives

Midway along the stretch of the ancient trade route between Tibet and India lies the Kel Tol neighbourhood. The name is derived from the original Koligrām, and it is believed the Koli people, who were originally from Rāmagrām in present-day southern Nepal near the Indian border, settled here. The Koli were the maternal ancestors of none other than the Buddha. Kel Tol is famous for the Buddhist monastic complex of Kanak Chaitya Mahāvihar, featuring the majestic two-tiered gilded temple of the white god Karunāmaya.&nbsp; This elaborately decorated courtyard is a bustling centre of the Vajrayāna sect of Buddhism, practised widely by the indigenous Newā people of Kathmandu Valley. Karunāmaya, also known as Ārya Avalokiteshwor, is defined in great detail in the 1st century CE Buddhist text Sadharmapundarikā where he liberates all sentient beings from suffering. He helps rid the eight external fears metaphorically equated with their equivalent internal states of mind: lions (pride), wild elephants (ignorance), fire (anger), snakes (jealousy), floods (attachment), imprisonment (miserliness), thieves (wrong views) and cannibals (doubt).  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20240418130432_fe370cbee75003cd3eb5dccc7c3b2671630da193b0744db2aeac1bab3ff4a85c.jpg" data-media-id="editor_0" data-image-id="20240418130432_fe370cbee75003cd3eb5dccc7c3b2671630da193b0744db2aeac1bab3ff4a85c" data-rendition-name="original" width="1338" height="2000" loading="lazy" alt="Seto Machhindranath"> </figure>  In the Pancha Rakshyā Sutra, a Buddhist scripture from 200 CE, Ārya Avalokiteshwor was counted among the eight major deities. Followers of the Brāhminical god Shiva worship Ārya Avalokiteshwor as Seto Machhindranāth. For Shaivites, Machhindranāth is the Indian saint who founded the Nāth cult in the 10th century CE. He is the guru of saint Gorakhnāth. During the reign of Yakshya Malla (1428–1482 CE), a beautiful image of Ārya Avalokiteshwor was dug up by a farmer in present-day Jamal, which was then a cultivated area outside the city. The farmer, known as a Jamami (meaning the one from Jamal) took the image home for safekeeping. That night, Ārya Avalokiteshwor appeared in the farmer’s dream and told him that the proper place for him to reside is at the confluence of two rivers. The nearest confluence was at present-day Wongha (Indrachok) and the image was installed in the Kanak Chaitya Mahāvihar complex in Kel Tol near Wongha. This made it easier for city residents to pay homage to Ārya Avalokiteshwor and spread compassion. Soon, the deity came to be revered highly as Jamaleshwor, the one found in Jamal. Eventually, the name got corrupted, as happens often in Nepāl Bhāsā, to Janabahā Dyo. The courtyard where his temple is located is now popularly known as Janabahā.  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20240418130432_5c9b219530e400445ef4e7f64856b43e7cdb756be26d9ed4565c84044c178a7e.jpg" data-media-id="editor_1" data-image-id="20240418130432_5c9b219530e400445ef4e7f64856b43e7cdb756be26d9ed4565c84044c178a7e" data-rendition-name="original" width="2500" height="1668" loading="lazy" alt="Seto Machhindranath"> </figure>  The gilded temple of Janabahā Dyo, first built in the early 16th century CE, is adorned with wooden and metal artefacts that symbolise 108 forms of Ārya Avalokiteshwor. It stands out as the most decorated temple of its kind in Kathmandu. Today, Janabahā is a living heritage site where many ancient customs and rituals are widely practised as per Vajrayāna Buddhist tradition. Devotees throng the Janabahā Dyo shrine for daily worship and to receive Karunāmaya’s blessings. Being the compassionate one, Ārya Avalokiteshwor goes around town every year in his tall wooden chariot to allow sick and physically disabled devotees to pay homage to him from the comfort of their homes. One could say it is a door-to-door visit by the Compassionate One.&nbsp; For the pragmatic minded, the chariot festival is an annual renewal of communal harmony, validation of our ancient mathematical supremacy and demonstration of the need to keep practical skills alive, including the craft of building earthquake resilient houses.  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20240418130432_fc8b234ceca87dee4b99e897a485cef121fb953857fb61492a413fbfcc48360c.jpg" data-media-id="editor_2" data-image-id="20240418130432_fc8b234ceca87dee4b99e897a485cef121fb953857fb61492a413fbfcc48360c" data-rendition-name="original" width="2500" height="1667" loading="lazy" alt="Seto Machhindranath"> </figure>  The Janabahā Dyo chariot is pulled from Jamal, where his image was found by the farmer, through the historic heart of Kathmandu in a gala parade every year. The procession, accompanied by folk music ensembles and revellers, starts on the eighth day of the bright half of the month of Chaitra, and lasts up to a week (ending on Saturday this year). Hundreds of devotees pull the chariot along the streets as a way of expressing their gratitude to lord Karunāmaya for blessing them with compassion and well-being. Purna Ratna Vajrāchārya is an ordained priest who belongs to the clan responsible for taking care of Janabahā Dyo. He has been studying the design and architecture of the chariot for the past 40 years, and overseeing its construction for the past 15. He has learnt that the engineering principles of building the chariot are based on the mathematical system in which Buddhism is taught. For example, 365 pieces of wood are used in the chariot, each representing a day of the year. Each of the four wheels consist of 25 pieces of wood, totalling 100, representing completeness or fulfilment. The chariot is vertically divided into 13 sections, a parallel to the Buddhist concept of Trayodashi Bhuvana that describes the 13 steps that one must take to achieve the state of Nirvana.&nbsp;  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20240418130432_36d9964c9845f6d9a074786361fc5ab7d49138503ad162086998b731349b0ec0.jpg" data-media-id="editor_3" data-image-id="20240418130432_36d9964c9845f6d9a074786361fc5ab7d49138503ad162086998b731349b0ec0" data-rendition-name="original" width="2500" height="1668" loading="lazy" alt="Seto Machhindranath"> </figure>   <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20240418130432_2662753a9514a682ccdfd17bf05e2be3771183a68dc86b717ab67d9aad894563.jpg" data-media-id="editor_4" data-image-id="20240418130432_2662753a9514a682ccdfd17bf05e2be3771183a68dc86b717ab67d9aad894563" data-rendition-name="original" width="1668" height="2500" loading="lazy" alt="Seto Machhindranath"> </figure>  &nbsp;Exactly nine types of wood are used, which is the sum of the four base elements that make up the universe (earth, water, fire and air) and the five human senses. The height and length of the chariot is 32 arm’s length (hāt in Sanskrit), 14.8m. The number 32 represents the maximum number of auspicious and physical qualities one could possess to be considered an outstanding human being.&nbsp; Says Vajrācharya, “Observing how the chariot is built helps one learn the fundamental pillars of the Buddha’s teachings, and find an easier path to Nirvana.” The structural design of the nearly 15m wooden chariot is not only awe-inspiring but also gravity-defying. It leverages the pliancy of the materials used in its construction -- flexible joints tied with cane soaked in water for several days. The precise proportions of the chariot ensure great manoeuverability in the narrow streets along the route of the chariot procession that include some 90° bends, without colliding into houses.  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20240418130432_9f5c2943f5d6b3f0010d3d5213697549945e87a6f7d3d8cbadd69f0dea6c6e2c.jpg" data-media-id="editor_5" data-image-id="20240418130432_9f5c2943f5d6b3f0010d3d5213697549945e87a6f7d3d8cbadd69f0dea6c6e2c" data-rendition-name="original" width="2500" height="3750" loading="lazy" alt="Seto Machhindranath"> </figure>  Driving and steering the chariot with brute muscle power of the mirthful crowd is a seemingly impossible task. But this has been achieved year after year, despite the fact that the devotees who tug wildly at the ropes lassoed to the two front wheels, are most likely in high-spirits (pun intended). Sanjay Manandhar, a US-based technology entrepreneur, recounts how his high school physics teacher from Canada asked his students to go observe the locals build the chariots of Karunāmaya if they were interested in becoming engineers in the future.&nbsp; “That made no sense to me then, but, after all these decades, I now see clearly how the structural design of the chariot, adopted early on by our ancestors is full of earthquake-resilient properties that need to be applied in building houses in an earthquake-prone zone like Nepal,” says Manandhar. A highlight of the chariot festival is that human goddess Kumari makes an appearance at the final destination in Lagan, usually on the third day. This is only one of the 13 times that people get to see the Kumari outside her temple abode.  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20240418130432_08aa39f3f004a212b33c60a2840d6013110de15dd34a0288f699dd5fda8957ab.jpg" data-media-id="editor_6" data-image-id="20240418130432_08aa39f3f004a212b33c60a2840d6013110de15dd34a0288f699dd5fda8957ab" data-rendition-name="original" width="2500" height="1667" loading="lazy" alt="Seto Machhindranath"> </figure>  On the last day of the festival (Saturday), the image of lord Karunāmaya is carried on a palanquin by priests from Janabahā in a gala procession and brought back to his permanent residence at the temple in Kel Tol.&nbsp; The chariot festival is thought to have started during the reign of King Pratap Malla of Kantipur in the 17th century CE. For close to four centuries, the construction of the chariot and its operation has proven to be a phenomenal engineering feat, and the people’s faith in divinity means the tradition is alive.&nbsp; The essence of the colourful rituals and the religious beliefs of this ancient chariot festival is now all but lost. The logic, technology and practicality must be brought back to light, as they reflect the high civilisation and wisdom of our ancestors that we can leverage in modern times and into the future. &nbsp; Alok Tuladhar is a culture and heritage documentarian.

Kathmandu’s gravity-defying chariot festival

In the run-up to the third Nepal Investment Summit this weekend, there have been seminars, conferences and workshops where the discourse has revolved around the economy and the investment climate.
The consensus that Nepal needs foreign direct investments (FDI) to grow was repeated, and the familiar litany of reasons about why it has not been able to was discussed.&nbsp;
Policy advocates and regulators have understood that the lack of urgency is compounded by procedural inconsistencies, on top of the already deficient investment environment in the country.
It is a welcome change from what used to be flippantly accepting matters as given. There now seems to be a sense of urgency, with procedural inconsistencies and lack of harmonisation between various Acts and regulations openly discussed.&nbsp;
Government stakeholders also appear more willing to learn and attempt to be part of the solution. Whatever policy changes have been introduced in the past have been piecemeal and address the few rather than the entire industry. This left dual regulatory approaches aimed at similar players.&nbsp;
Read also: <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/opinion/killing-investment-in-nepal-in-10-easy-steps">Killing investment in Nepal in 10 easy steps</a>, Dibesh Karmacharya
This time, unlike in the past two Summits, the government seems to be committed to amending 9 Acts, a positive step towards showing commitment to change. However, the deadline to do so during the winter session of Parliament is over. The option mooted has been to have it passed through ordinance, a lesser appealing step; albeit, a positive one moving forward.&nbsp;
To attract FDI in a competitive global market means that Nepal has to demonstrate that it is serious about bringing in investments with a more consultative and collaborative approach with investors. A departure from procedural to a result-oriented focus is needed.&nbsp;
To put issues in perspective, Nepal needs US$20 billion in investments to meet the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) targets by 2030. If net-zero decarbonisation targets are to be met by 2045, another US$7 billion will be required annually.&nbsp;
Looking at our investment history and poor government capital expenditure, the gap is long and wide. In fiscal year 2022-23 Nepal booked a lamentable ~$59 million in FDI (equity). Nepal is in fact the lowest market in South Asia for FDI with 0.3% of the regional average.&nbsp;
What is it that we can do to fill the gap?&nbsp;
First, we need to move away from the notion that Nepal only needs large investments. This has proven to be a mistake, and time series data have proven that smaller investments, in aggregate, make a larger impact on economies.&nbsp;
Read also: <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/poor-cash-rich-nepal">Poor cash-rich Nepal</a>, Sonia Awale
We talk about an ‘enabling environment’ but without the right tools. We place restrictions on interest on debt ceiling (SOFR +5.5), without risk premium adjustments, we do not have an active secondary market for bond trading, nor do we have a yield curve, an integral part of the bond market, which is inhibiting us from tapping into the trillion dollar green bond market.&nbsp;
In order to attract green financing, Nepal needs to develop its bond market. Sovereign risk rating has been mooted and was expected to be operationalised before the Investment Summit.&nbsp;
However, to be rated in an adverse economic environment could further deteriorate investment potential due to a lesser-than-expected rating.&nbsp;
Hedging is another instrument that needs further research on. A commercial bank last year showcased the first risk-hedging mechanism for an investment of $8 million. This can be the beginning to expand on its modality. &nbsp;
Subordinated debt instruments have been introduced, but on a special nod basis, this now needs to be institutionalised as it is the most applicable form of investment after equity in a market that has volatile forex reserves.&nbsp;
Read also: <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/editorial/invest-in-investment">Invest in investment</a>, Nepali Times
Viability Gap Funding has been introduced by multilateral development agencies implemented in solar installations. It is a tool to incentivise the private sector to invest in projects that are not financially lucrative initially, but have potential for profitability in the long run. This needs to be scaled up and replicated in sectors like infrastructure, where returns may not be immediate.
Moving forward, to attract FDI, Nepal needs to tap into the funds that are available for the growth of small and medium enterprises (SMEs) and climate change. Alternative investments such as Private Equity Venture Capital (PEVC) have been around in a structured manner in Nepal for nearly a decade now.
These funds have blended finance components and have attracted climate funding as well. PEVC is a new asset class and can address the issues of penetrating into SME financing by incorporating environment, social and governance issues into their investment process.&nbsp;
SMEs are the backbone of any economy, PEVC comes with the ability not only to scale up the enterprise with risk capital, but with the ability to bring technical knowhow to enhance not only the enterprise but also the entrepreneur.&nbsp;
Read also: <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/opinion/success-in-nepal-means-not-having-to-work">Success in Nepal means not having to work</a>, Anil Chitrakar
A differentiator from all other forms of financing available till date in Nepal. Blended finance is a way of de-risking investments, especially in frontier markets. Business Oxygen (BO2) is an example of blended finance with subordinated debt investments of IFC (World Bank Group) taking the lead and Climate Investment Funds along with FCDO as co-investors.&nbsp;
On a larger scale, the 216MW Upper Trisuli 1 is another example of blended finance with IFC, a Korean consortium and local investments. So far, we see that development finance Institutions have been taking the lead in Nepal as their risk appetite is greater than commercial investors and they are eager to help develop the financial markets.&nbsp;
In order to be sustainable, we need to step on this and attract commercial capital from all over the world. To do this there has to be political will to make that pivot.&nbsp;
Instead of being a means to an end, the two previous Investment Summits turned out to be intermittent and cosmetic, providing hardly any results. The third one’s success will depend on how the event will be implemented as a platform for continuous marketing for the country and facilitation for investors in future.&nbsp;
Nepal has outdone many countries in its macro-economic indicators, with sound forex reserves and a stellar history of debt payments to its creditors. This story needs to be propagated along with the drive for change to attract potential investors.
Read also: <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/opinion/comment/alternative-investments-to-attract-fdi">Alternative investments to attract FDI</a>, Siddhant Raj Pandey

2015-nepal-earthquake

Disastrous preparedness

The rise of high-rises

Rebuilding better than before

Building back (not) better after 2015

#NepalQuake 8 years later

Back to classroom for earthquake preparedness

Concrete lessons of 2015

Concrete planning

Building back better (and stronger) with bamboo

Step by step for rural health care in Nepal

The return of the natives

The rise of high-rises

Kathmandu’s gravity-defying chariot festival

Nepal looks at alternative investments